(SARAJEVO) - International and Bosnian officials hailed on Friday adoption by Bosnian lawmakers of long-disputed police reforms, saying it moved the country closer to joining the European Union.

"I would like to congratulate all those who have worked hard to reach a compromise for the sake of a better future for Bosnia-Hercegovina and all its citizens," the top international envoy to Bosnia, Miroslav Lajcak, said in a statement.

Police reforms adopted by Bosnian lower house lawmakers on Thursday were the last EU-set hurdle for the country to sign a key pact on closer ties with the 27-nation bloc.

"Better days are ahead of us and also a lot of work related to signing of the SAA," Prime Minister Nikola Spiric said in a reference to the Stabilisation and Association Agreement with the EU.

"The EU Presidency is looking forward for the signing of the SAA with Bosnia as soon as possible," the EU's Slovenian presidency said in a statement Friday.

Two police reform bills which passed by 22 votes to 19 still need confirmation by the Upper House, considered a formality.

Since the 1992-1995 war Bosnia consists of two highly autonomous entities -- the Serbs' Republika Srpska and the Muslim-Croat Federation. Both have their own parliament, government and police and are linked by weak central institutions.

Initially, Brussels demanded a rapid unification of the country's separate police forces.

However Bosnian Serbs insisted on retaining control of police in Republika Srpska while Croats and Muslims wanted the forces to be unified and put under the authority of the state.

Eventually the EU and the parliament accepted reforms which envisage setting up seven new state-level police coordination bodies, without immediately affecting the autonomy of the entities' police forces.

The adopted bills stipulate that the new bodies will assume authority over separate police forces after a year, in a way to be defined by constitutional reform.

There is no set date for the start of the constitutional reform process.

Text and Picture Copyright 2008 AFP. All other Copyright 2008 EUbusiness Ltd. All rights reserved. This material is intended solely for personal use. Any other reproduction, publication or redistribution of this material without the written agreement of the copyright owner is strictly forbidden and any breach of copyright will be considered actionable.